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Caerwent Community Neighbourhood Watch

POLICE NOTES


JUNE 2001


The good weather has now arrived - hopefully it will last - and the foot and and mouth epidemic is decreasing. Unfortunately criminals become more active as well in the summer.

Recent crimes in Caerwent


16th April.
At approximately 11.30p.m. on the 16th April (Bank Holiday Monday) a delivery man delivered a meal from a local Chinese restaurant to the Coach and Horses public house.
When he arrived and was speaking to the female who had ordered the meal, he was accosted by a male. This male, who was drunk, threatened him with violence, verbally abused him and then, with another male, damaged the delivery man's car. The damage was over £120.
The public house was emptying and there were lots of people about. Strangely, no-one appears to have seen anything and the licensee has declined to give me the names of any suspects.
I feel very strongly that a law-abiding citizen going about his business should not be subjected to threats of violence and having his personal property damaged by drunks.
I am therefore appealing to the persons involved to contact me at Caldicot police station and to admit their part in this nasty incident. You will be treated fairly and responsibly.
If anyone witnessed this incident please contact me at CALDICOT POLICE STATION Tel. 01291 430999.


7th May.
On the evening of the 7th of May there was an alleged firearms and hostage situation. Armed firearms officers attended and the situation was resolved peacefully.
Note: In these situations it is vital that all parties do exactly what the attending police officers order them to do. If you don't, and you have a firearm displayed, you could be shot. Firearms officers shoot to kill.



18th May.
On the evening of the 18th of May there was an assault outside the Northgate public house. A local male has been interviewed concerning this matter.



And finally...
There have been recent reports of males acting suspiciously in and around Five Lanes, Caerwent and Llanvair. Shed and garage break-ins have also continued. Remember, if you see anything suspicious, contact the police immediately.





As promised last month, I am now offering information and advice on various forms of drug abuse. This month I am concentrating on -

ALCOHOL


Firstly, I must stress that the vast majority of people visiting pubs, clubs, restaurants etc. and drink, are perfectly law-abiding citizens who never cause any problems and are just enjoying themselves.
All the information contained in this article is freely available from the listed publications at the end of it.

As a police officer, I and my colleagues regularly have to attend incidents and see injured people whose injuries have been caused, directly or indirectly, as a result of people drinking too much alcohol and behaving unlawfully. Serving police officers are occasionally seriously injured or killed whilst dealing with these incidents.

Alcohol abuse destroys families and kills people.

There are clear connections between alcohol abuse and crime. Alcohol is by far the most abused drug in our society. It is easy to obtain and freely available to anyone 18 years & over.



The social and financial costs to society as a result of excessive drinking are huge.

These costs are often not considered by the person who drinks too much.

  • Police officer attendance £80 per hour each. (I hasten to add I see very little of this!)
  • Ambulance call-out about £150 per time. I had the misfortune of seeing a heart attack victim having to wait for 50 minutes for an ambulance to attend as all three duty ambulances were dealing with drunks. Normal response time for the ambulance was 10-15 minutes. The heart attack victim subsequently died.
  • The vast majority of fights and public order incidents are alcohol related.
  • The majority of domestic violence usually involves alcohol.
  • On Friday nights and at weekends a large proportion of patients attending the accident and emergency unit of the hospital are under the influence of alcohol.
  • DRUNK DRIVERS KILL PEOPLE,
  • The cost of treating alcohol related illnesses and injuries by the National Health Service is huge. This cost has to come out of the overall funding which means there is less money for other treatments, i.e. cancer etc.



    ALCOHOL AND CRIME: STATISTICS


    Alcohol use is associated with:
    • 60 - 70% of homicides - murder etc.
    • 70% of stabbings
    • 70% of beatings/assaults in public
    • Over 50% of fights or assaults in the home
    • Over 13,000 violent incidents take place in or near licensed premises each WEEK.
    • Between 65% and 80% of victims of assault receiving hospital treatment were intoxicated at the time of the assault.
    • SUICIDES - alcohol is involved in 65% of suicide attempts.




    DO YOU DRINK TOO MUCH?

    Alcohol affects people differently - the speed with which it is absorbed into a person's body depends on sex, build, age etc. Alcohol is measured in units and below is a rough guide;

    One unit of alcohol is equivalent to:
    • Half a pint of average strength beer (250ml) or
    • A glass of wine (125ml) or
    • A standard pub measure of spirits/fortified wine such as sherry or port (25ml)


    MEN SHOULD DRINK NO MORE THAN 3 to 4 UNITS A DAY AND WOMEN NO MORE THAN 2 - 3 UNITS A DAY.

    On special occasions such as Christmas and New Year most people over indulge. Drinking a little bit extra at these times is unlikely to have a long-term health effect. If you are regularly drinking more than the above recommended amount, you should seek further advice.

    I recently had to interview a man who had, between 8:00 A.M. and 11:30 P.M., consumed NINETEEN pints of strong cider. That's over THREE GALLONS. He was adamant that he didn't have a drink problem... !



    ALCOHOL AND THE LAW


    It is an offence to be drunk in a public place.
    However, many police officers use their discretion as long as the offender is not causing a nuisance and can make his way home safely. If we didn't, every cell in every police station would be full of drunks every weekend.

    It is a criminal offence to be drunk and incapable or drunk and disorderly. Offenders are normally arrested.

    It is a criminal offence for any person, 18 years or over, to purchase alcohol to supply to under age drinkers.
    Offenders will be taken to court.

    It is an offence for any licensee to serve any of their customers who are intoxicated with alcohol.

    AGES FOR CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL
    Below is a table that outlines current legislation regarding the supply of alcohol to young persons up to 18 years old; The law is summarised in the table below and varies according to the age of your child:

    Age
    What the law says.
    under 5It is illegal to give an alcoholic drink to a child under 5 except in certain circumstances such as under medical supervision
    under 14A young person under 14 cannot go into the bar of a pub unless the pub has a 'Children's Certificate'. If it does not have one, they can only go into parts of licensed premises where alcohol is EITHER sold but not drunk (e.g. an off-licence or a sales point away from the pub), OR drunk but not sold (e.g. a garden or family room).
    14 or 1514 and 15 year olds can go anywhere in a pub, but cannot drink alcohol.
    16 or 1716 and 17 year olds can buy (or be bought) beer or cider as an accompaniment to a maal, but not in a bar (i.e. only in an area specifically set aside for meals).
    Under 18Exceptfor16 or17 year olds having a meal in apub (see above), it is against the law for anyone under 18 to buy alcohol in a pub, off-licence, supermarket or other outlet; or for anyone else to buy alcohol in a pub for someone who is under l8.


    Some towns and cities have local by-laws banning the drinking of alcohol in public (on public transport for example).

    Children and young people learn about alcohol at an early age. By the age of 7 most children have already tasted an alcoholic drink (Gran's sherry etc.) and between the ages of 10 and 13 most children have had their first alcoholic drink.

    Most adolescents drink occasionally and moderately, especially in their teens. At around 16, both sexes and boys in particular, begin to drink more heavily.
    Ideally, you should talk to your child about drinking before he or she is likely to experiment with alcohol.

    If you have worries or concerns regarding your own or a friend's alcohol consumption, then the following useful contacts are available:

    • DRUGS AND ALCOHOL - A PARENT'S GUIDE
      Available free from Boots pharmacy counters - published in conjunction with the Health Education Council.

    • DISCUSSING DRINKING WITH YOUR CHILDREN
      Available in doctors' waiting rooms. Published by The Portman Group, 3rd floor, 7-10 Chandos Street, London W1M 9DE, Tel: 020 7907 3700.
      Internet website, www.portman-group.org.uk

    • Drinkline
      Open daily Monday to Friday 9:00am-11:00pm, Saturday and Sunday 6:00pm-11:00pm. Calls are free and confidential.
      Tel: 0800 917 8282

    • Health Promotion Wales/Hybu Lechyd Cymru
      Ffynnon-las, Llanishen, Cardiff CF4 5DZ
      Tel: 01222 752222
      Internet website, www.hpw.wales.gov.uk

    • Alcohol Concern
      Waterbridge House, 32-36 Loman Street, London SE1 OEE Tel: 020 7928 7377
      Internet website, www.alcoholconcern.org.uk

    • Alcoholics Anonymous
      Head Office, P 0 Box 1, Stonebow House, Stonebow.York YOI 7NJ
      Tel: 01904 644 026
      Internet website, www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk

    • Health Education Authority (HEA)
      Trevelyan House, 30 Great Peter Street, London SW1P 2HW
      Tel: 020 7222 5300
      Internet website, www.hea.org.uk

    • THE GWENT ALCOHOL PROJECT
      Telephone 01633 252045

    Next month I'll be publishing information on the different "classes" of drugs, including glues. aerosols, tranquillisers and cannabis abuse.



    I hope that you will all have a crime free June and remember to keep those garages and sheds well secured!

    FINALLY - Don't forget that on SUNDAY, 3rd JUNE I will be available to meet anyone who has concerns, at the following venues:

    10.00 - 11.00 A.M., at the Community Hall, Caerwent

    ll.l5 A.M. - 12,15 P.M. at the Woodland Tavern, Llanvair Discoed

    Alternatively you can leave a message for me on 01291-430999.

    Best wishes.

    Ashley Turner.
    PC 737, Community Police Constable

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